Reviving Sudan-South Sudan Dialogue on Abyei

 The UN Political and Peace Building Affairs Department posted on 5 November 2025 the remarks by special envoy of the Secretary General for the Horn of Africa Guang Cong to the UN Security Council on Sudan and South Sudan.

The civil war in Sudan is exacerbating the humanitarian situation in the disputed region of Abyei along the Sudan-South Sudan border and has interrupted negotiations for a settlement.  There are recent indications that both Sudan and South Sudan are willing to revive the African Union-led political process regarding Abyei's future.  

South Sudan Is Returning to War

 Foreign Policy published on 1 April 2025 an analysis titled "South Sudan Is Returning to War" by Clemence Pinaud, Indiana University.

The author concluded that "there are currently no restraints on the government of South Sudan from returning to a full-blown war, and from targeting civilians based on their ethnicity."

Upper Nile in South Sudan Prepares for War

 Small Arms Survey published in March 2023 an analysis titled "Upper Nile Prepares to Return to War."

Armed groups are mobilizing for conflict in South Sudan's Upper Nile province.  The commanders of the armed groups in Upper Nile are acting with different degrees of autonomy from their backers in the capital of Juba.  A resurgence of violence will interrupt the distribution of humanitarian supplies and services in Upper Nile and Jonglei provinces.  

Fighting Resumes in South Sudan

 The Associated Press published on 24 March 2022 an article titled "Fighting Resumes in South Sudan, Threatens Peace Agreement" by Deng Machol.

New fighting broke out between rival factions in South Sudan, threatening a fragile peace agreement between President Salva Kiir and his rival Vice President Riek Machar.  

South Sudan Peace Process: The Politics of Delay

The Conflict Research Programme at the London School of Economics and Political Science published on 2 December 2019 a paper titled "South Sudan: The Politics of Delay" by Alex de Waal, Alan Boswell, David Deng, Rachel Ibreck, Matthew Benson and Jan Pospisil.

The authors conclude that the single most important concern during the current 100 day delay in the peace process is maintaining the ceasefire in South Sudan; a slow political process is far preferable to a return to war. A close second is maintaining forward motion in addressing the governance issues facing the country; continued discussion is better than a lurch into authoritarianism. The 100 day delay should be seen by international policy makers as an opportunity for advancing consultation and strengthening action towards a peace agenda.

South Sudan: The Perils of Payroll Peace

UK Aid and the London School of Economics and Political Science published in March 2019 a paper titled "South Sudan: The Perils of Payroll Peace."

Payroll peace is the practice of putting large numbers of soldiers and civil servants on the state payroll as an incentive for them, and the belligerent parties, to accept a peace agreement. This has become standard practice in South Sudan. The paper argues that at best it is corruption, at worst it is violently explosive.

Time Is Running Out for South Sudan's Peace Deal

World Politics Review published on 7 January 2019 an analysis titled "Is Time Already Running Out for South Sudan's New Peace Deal?" by John Hursh, U.S. Naval War College.

The South Sudan peace agreement calls for a transitional government to assume power in May 2019 before national elections three years later. Already behind schedule, an unfinished or partially implemented peace deal raises serious risk of a return to conflict.

How Arms from China and Other Countries Fuel South Sudan's Civil War

The London-based Conflict Armament Research (CAR) organization published in November 2018 a major report titled "Weapon Supplies into South Sudan's Civil War: Regional Re-transfers and International Intermediaries."

While weapons originated in numerous countries, China accounts for 37 percent of the weapons and more than 99 percent of the ammunition circulating in South Sudan since 2014 as documented by the CAR. The CAR found no evidence that China supplied directly or indirectly weapons or ammunition to the SPLA since May 2014.

For a summary of the report, see an article in Foreign Policy dated 29 November 2018 titled "How European and Chinese Arms Diverted to South Sudan Fueled Its Civil War" by Robbie Gramer.

Monitoring Hate Speech in South Sudan

Peace Tech Lab published on 25 August 2017 its second report titled "Hate Speech Monitoring and Conflict Analysis in South Sudan."

The report is part of an initiative by Peace Tech Lab to analyze online hate speech in South Sudan in order to help mitigate the threat of hateful language in fueling violence. Peace Tech Lab is seeking to build a statistical model for predicting violence in South Sudan before it occurs. The primary sources of hate speech are social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and specialized forums.

South Sudan Refugee Crisis

Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) published on 17 August 2017 an article titled "A War without End: Neighbors Carry the Burden of South Sudan's Fleeing Millions" by Sam Okiror, IRIN contributor based in Kampala.

More than a million South Sudanese refugees have now crossed the border into Uganda in what is the world's fastest-growing refugee crisis. An additional million or more South Sudanese refugees have fled to Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Central African Republic.

South Sudan's Home-made Humanitarian Crisis

The Institute for Defense Analyses Africa Watch published on 16 March 2017 a short analysis titled "In South Sudan a Man-made Crisis Repeats Itself" by Sarah Graveline.

The author points out that the current famine in two counties and food insecurity elsewhere in South Sudan is caused by competing government and rebel forces who are using food as a weapon.

South Sudan: An Update on Governance

The International Crisis Group published on 20 December 2016 a report titled "South Sudan: Rearranging the Chessboard." It concludes that while there is calm in the capital of Juba, national peace remains distant with much of the country under fragile local truces or in conflict.

South Sudan: Conflict Dynamics in Unity State

The Small Arms Survey published in December 2016 a lengthy report titled "A State of Disunity: Conflict Dynamics in Unity State, South Sudan, 2013-2015" by Joshua Craze and Jerome Tubiana with Claudio Gramizzi.

The paper surveys the first two years of the South Sudanese civil war and analyses its underlying conflict dynamics. Since the beginning of the civil war in December 2013, Unity State, the only majority-Nuer state in South Sudan, has experienced more violence than any other state. One of the primary reasons for conflict was a dispute over the governorship in 1997, which continues to contribute to tension in the state.

Investigation of July 2016 Violence in Juba

The executive summary of the Independent Special Investigation into the violence which occurred in Juba, South Sudan, from 8 to 11 July 2016 is now available. The investigation found that a lack of leadership on the part of key senior UNMISS personnel culminated in a chaotic and ineffective response to the violence.

South Sudan: Analysis of July 2016 Violence in Juba and UN Response

The Washington-based, independent non-governmental organization known as Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) just published a major report titled "Under Fire: The July 2016 Violence in Juba and UN Response."

On 8 July 2016, intense fighting erupted in Juba, the capital of South Sudan. The report examines the harm that civilians suffered during the July crisis as well as UNMISS's response to those protection threats. The parties to the conflict inflicted serious harm on civilians and, even given the difficult operating environment, CIVIC argues that UNMISS underperformed in fulfilling core parts of its mandate.

South Sudan: Attack on Humanitarian Aid Workers

World Politics Review published on 5 October 2016 an article titled "Attack on Aid Workers in South Sudan Was an Attack on Humanitarianism Itself" by Nanjala Nyabola, political analyst based in Nairobi.

The article recounts the attack in August 2016 by South Sudan's soldiers on foreign aid workers at the Terrain Hotel in Juba, South Sudan.

De-escalating South Sudan's Most Recent Fighting

The International Crisis Group (ICG) blog ran on 12 July 2016 a commentary titled "De-escalating South Sudan's New Flare-up" by Casie Copeland, ICG senior analyst for South Sudan. The author suggests that a unified regional position by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, backed by the African Union, China, and the United States, is crucial to stopping the fighting.

South Sudan: A Pass on Independence Day

Foreign Policy published on 8 July 2016 a commentary titled "The Independence Day Nobody's Celebrating" by Jason Patinkin.

South Sudan marks five years of independence on 9 July 2016. Its peace agreement is in trouble. There will be no celebration on this fifth anniversary.

Preventing Renewed War in South Sudan

The International Crisis Group issued a statement on 1 July 2016 titled "Preventing War in South Sudan." It puts most of the burden on the Intergovernmental Authority for Development heads of state for preventing a return to war in South Sudan.

The Paper Tiger in South Sudan

The Enough Project published in May 2016 commentary titled "The Paper Tiger in South Sudan: Threats without Consequences for Atrocities and Kleptocracy" by John Prendergast. The author concludes that the root cause for the atrocities and instability in South Sudan is that the government has morphed into a violent kleptocracy.